Thursday, 28 January 2016

A man has been ordered to pay £1,240 in fines and costs
after admitting fly tipping waste in Besom Lane, Westerleigh.

The man from Staple Hill appeared before North
Avon Magistrates’ Court and was
fined £400 with costs of £800 and a £40 victim surcharge.

The court heard that a Yate resident had been in contact with Burnell
who agreed to remove some cardboard and packaging waste for the resident
for £40. The waste was subsequently found dumped in a lay-by on Besom
Lane.
Burnell had claimed that he was driving along Besom Lane a few days
after collecting the waste, when he saw some litter, including a
mattress, dumped in a lay-by on the side of the road. He admitted
dumping the Yate residents’ waste there as well.

If you have unwanted goods and household or garden waste, you are
advised either to dispose of it at no cost via the council's Sort It
centres or to give it to an Environment Agency registered waste carrier.
Otherwise you could be held liable if waste is subsequently fly tipped.
There are some simple steps you can take:

Ask for a copy of the company’s waste carrier registration
certificate and ask where the waste is being taken. Legitimate firms
will be happy to provide this information.

Please do not be tempted to use people offering cheap waste clearance on
sites such as Facebook and Gumtree unless you have confirmed that they
are registered with the Environment Agency.
You can check by calling the Environment Agency on 08708 506506 or by
checking the public register of waste carriers.

Ask for a registered trading address and contact telephone number for the trader and get a receipt.

Thursday, 21 January 2016

Residents of South Gloucestershire have been shocked to
learn that Highways England have no idea about long standing hopes for
more sustainable parking at the Tormarton motorway Junction.

Highways England closed the Picnic /Parking Site
last year without any consultation, resulting in more cars dangerously
parked on the nearby verges. Sue Hope (Liberal Democrat, Cotswold Edge
ward) has been fighting for years to get a
formal Park and Share site at this busy junction. This would be of
vital strategic importance to the area, and dramatically reduce
congestion on local roads. It is included in the West of England Joint
Transport Plan.

Sue said: “I was shocked when a Highways England
Officer told me they had no idea about the vision for a Park and Share
site on the A46, nor did anyone on her staff.

“We desperately need better communication between
agencies. I can’t believe what’s going on. Instead of opening it up, and
improving local transport, they’ve simply closed the location. People
are now parking illegally on the grass verges
– because there’s nowhere else for them to go! I can’t believe they
could be so short sighted, or so ignorant of what we want for the area.
They’ve acted without so much as a by your leave, or any thought amongst
themselves.

“We need a proper joined up approach, with a formal
Park and Share site. This area could really help improve local
transport, and it needs to be properly run.”

It's now been 75 years since the bombing of the Parnall’s Aircraft Factory in Yate.

Yate Town Council is organising an event in conjunction with Whirlpool
Appliances Ltd, (formally Indesit Company) who now occupy the site and
works formerly known as Parnalls, and Yate Heritage Centre to
commemorate the 75th Anniversary of the bombing of Parnall Aircraft.

If you are a survivor or the family member of a survivor of the bombing
and would like to be involved in this event, or if you have memories or things
you would like to share, please contact Yate Town Council. Email info@yatetowncouncil.gov.uk or telephone 01454 866506 or pop in and see them at Poole Court in Yate.

There would be a new 85 service operating an hourly circular route as above but in a clockwise direction.

The 86 service would operate between Yate and Longwell Green,
going via Coalpit Heath, Greenacres Park, Kingswood and New Cheltenham on an hourly basis (currently 2 hourly). School journeys will still be provided, although
times may alter slightly.

The changes mean that people to the North of Yate wanting to travel to Emersons Green, Mangotsfield, or Kingswood would need to change at Yate bus Station.

Monday, 18 January 2016

We were already expecting that South Glos Council would have to make
significant cuts in the coming year but the news from the Conservative
government was even worse than had been planned for. The council will be
getting less money than expected from the Government to provide
services.

The council can now charge a levy of up to 2% towards rising social care
costs, on top of the up to 1.99% council tax rise allowed without a
referendum. Even if council tax did go up by 3.99% including the social
care levy, there is likely to be a shortfall in 2018/19 of around £6m
and in 2019/20 of £8m - which would require even more cuts on top of the £34m
already planned for.

Due to these and other changes since the council's budget consultation
was launched, the deadline for comments has been extended until 31st
January. You can find out more and have your say here.

The first priority will be sorting out the broken and wonky paving. This isn't a trivial job - there are more than 50 broken slabs to replace, plus many more that need resetting. Yate Town Council is getting quotes from contractors, and they hope that the repairs will start within the next couple of weeks.

Local people, traders and councillorscelebrating the change of land ownership

Thursday, 14 January 2016

Could you become a Community Fire Safety Volunteer with Avon Fire and Rescue Service and The Care Forum?

Community Fire Safety Volunteers research, contact and visit local social and community groups. They encourage these groups to sign up for Avon Fire and Rescue’s free Home Fire Safety Visits, a free lifesaving service that Firefighters deliver to people in their own homes. This is an important and worthwhile role that helps prevent devastating home fires and, ultimately, helps save lives.

You would be providing a valuable life-saving service in your community, gaining skills and using your experience and free time to help keep local people safer.

Wednesday, 13 January 2016

Maybe you're wondering how to fulfill that vague New Year resolution about getting more active? Or you want to find local sources of health information? Or do some volunteering that helps others become more healthy, or cope with their health issues?

There's a very useful new website called Well Aware that lets you search for information, resouces and activities local to you. Please visit the Well Aware website and browse around to find something that suits you.

Tuesday, 12 January 2016

Rodford Way and the junctions along it have seen a succession of accidents over the years, and following pressure from local councillors (see our previous blog post) South Glos Council have drawn up proposals for improvements:

Shire Way / Sundridge Park junction - There have been many vehicle accidents here because drivers aren't certain who has priority. It is proposed to put some "Give Way" markings in the central crossover areas to make this clear.

Shire Way junction - a number of cyclists have been injured here, possibly because drivers pulling out of Shire Way are too busy trying to work out what cars in the centre of the road are doing. It is proposed to mark out the cycle lane with green surfacing and put up a sign to remind drivers that there is a cycle lane. (At the moment it is not intended to do the same on the Sundridge Park side of the junction, but that would seem very logical)Abbotswood junction - at school run times a lot of vehicles, sometimes minibuses as well as cars, do a very dangerous U-turn via the mouth of Abbotswood and across both lines of traffic and both cycle lanes. We've personally witnessed a number of very near misses here. It is proposed to put in a traffic island at the mouth of Abbotswood to deter U-turns and to prohibit this dangerous manouvre.

Rodford Way near Kelston Close - The final part of the proposals is for an advisory 20mph speed limit on Rodford Way near Kelston Close in both directions, in line with Council policy to install 20mph
speed restrictions outside schools. The restriction will operate at school opening and closing times as shown by signs with flashing lights. The road is so busy that it's not uncommon to see 30 or so people all trying to cross the road at once between the Abbotswood car park and Kelston Close.

Friday, 8 January 2016

The A432 Badminton Road through Old Sodbury - a busy link for traffic from Yate and Chipping Sodbury to the M4 and the A46, will be closed for three days in January.

The length of road from Catchpot Lane to the A46 at the Cross Hands, will be closed for roadworks to install a new drainage system.

Please allow extra time to follow the signed diversions.There will be access to local businesses from the Chipping Sodbury direction, but there will be special signs telling HGVs to turn round much earlier.

Yate Town Council has completed the purchase of the land in front of the shops at the Abbotswood Shopping Centre. They
plan to look after it properly, doing things like repairing the broken
and dangerous paving slabs. They will be working with local people and
with Abbotswood Action Group to decide on priorities and how the area
will be managed and improved. Many
congratulations to Yate Town Council - they've been working on this for
a long time, and they've had to overcome many legal and practical
problems to achieve this.More details will follow, but if you're on Facebook you might like to "Like" the Abbotswood Action Group Facebook page, where you can find out about the events and initiatives organised by this lively local group.

Monday, 4 January 2016

The South Gloucestershire BIG Spring Clean 2016 runs from 1 March – 30
April 2016. This is a chance for community groups, Parish Councils and
residents to help clean up their neighbourhood and open spaces.

You don't have to in a formal group - you could get together with
friends, family or neighbours. Or you might be part of a group that is
already taking part in voluntary clean-ups during the year but want to
take the opportunity of the BIG Spring Clean to play a part in a bigger
campaign.

Free gloves, refuse sacks, litter pickers and hoops are on offer to
groups who organise a ‘community’ BIG Spring Clean event, on a
first-come-first-served basis. South Glos Council can arrange to collect
the bags of litter you pick up. Unfortunately, they are unable to
supply skips for the disposal of rubbish.

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LIBERAL DEMOCRATS

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